Until next year...

Each year, I have two learning opportunities which greatly invigorate me. I look forward to the Dodge Foundation's "Spring and Fountain" poetry sessions. At those March/April sessions, I don't "have to" write, but simply can listen and appreciate works from old and new poets alike. Writing during the school year generally never happens. I have no idea how Cat Doty teaches Language Arts and writes poetry during the school year---super hero! I also look forward to the summer aTi sessions. In July, I am free from the requirements of my job (at this point, can I call myself a professional data analyst?) and can concentrate on what I love: writing. 

I enjoy the aTi sessions because of the diverse people who I meet. I always give credit to the participants who try a field that is outside of their comfort zones (Melissa, from our group, gets "props" for her bravery). I also enjoy the sessions because I get out of my comfort zone and write about topics that might not have otherwise crossed my mind.

The beginning of the new school year is not too far away and I know that soon enough I'll be reading essays, grading essays, helping students analyze literature, and on and on, but I always know that July brings aTi with it.

Until next year...

Favorites from Showcase

During the afternoon, we got to see all of the work that other participants created. I'm always impressed by the oil painting group. Within five days, they seem to produce such an array of pieces. Denise (who I remember from last year) once again wowed me with her paintings. She discussed how the group had to complete a still life painting (she painted a pitcher and flowers). Then, she experimented with the image from the still life and used it in other paintings.
                

I also was intrigued by an artist who talked about how difficult it was to paint subjects she knew from a photo. It's one thing to paint from a photo of some random person or even of some celebrity. A lot more is at stake when you're painting from a photo of someone you know. I think that the same could be said for poetry. When you write fictitiously, there's less at stake than if you write about someone who you know/knew. I think, however, that the better art is created by using those we know as inspiration.


From the mosaics group, Karen's piece moved me the most. The piece is a tribute to her mother. She spoke about how her mother passed away and how selling her mother's home was an incredibly difficult experience. Within her mosaic piece she incorporated the key to her mother's home. Art truly can help us heal...and remember.

   

"I don't want to read first"--aTi Showcase

After lunch, the aTi showcase began. This is when we rotate from group to group and see what the different participants have accomplished.

As usual, the poetry group went first. There were six chairs lined up. I definitely did not want to read first, but reading last didn't seem too great either. I took seat #5 or #2...depending on the viewpoint.

I decided to read "How to Spice Up the Bedroom" and "Someone I Know." I was nervous, but tried just focusing on my poems. I did my regular motion of placing my hand on my upper leg---something I tend to do when nervous---but otherwise, there was no shaking of the voice or anything.

I love this culminating day because all of our personalities come out through our pieces and how we read them. This was my fourth year of aTi and third time completing the poetry sessions. I can sincerely say that this group was the best group I've ever worked with. Cat created an environment in which we felt comfortable enough with sharing...everything. Everyone in the group also respectfully helped each other critique/improve our poems.

aTi 2015 Poetry: Cat Doty, Carolyn, Renee Ashley, Svea, Mary, John, me, Melissa

Hand splayed out on leg...it's a thang;-) Also, decent hair day--yay!

Day 5

Any morning that starts with desserts is surely a good one. Our last day of aTi certainly fit into that category. Lemon meringue pie had come up in conversation during the week, mainly because of one of Carolyn's poems. We discussed the sound of the word ---lovely sound, isn't it? We discussed the challenge and care that goes into making a lemon meringue pie. As someone who only makes Pillsbury Funfetti cupcakes, lemon meringue pie definitely intrigued me.

We came into our classroom on the last day of aTi and Cat surprised us with....lemon meringue pie!



For the record, the lemon meringue pie was phenomenal:)



During our morning session, we had a special guest with us, Cat's friend, poet Renee Ashley. I met Renee at last year's aTi sessions and also had a spring Dodge session with her. Cat lovingly refers to Renee as "the slasher" since Renee can edit a piece to contain only what it needs. I remember working with her last year. Even if you do not write similar to her genre, she doesn't critique your genre. She simply zones in on your word choice and intent.



I decided to share the piece I wrote in response to our games prompt: "Seven Minutes in Heaven." I was actually proud of myself because there was one line in stanza three that I wanted to completely omit; Renee agreed with me. There wasn't too much that was recommending for editing. As Renee said, "The piece does its job." In other words, I wrote this poem as a playful recollection of an adolescent game, I'm not making a political statement or toying with new genres or patterns. This certainly is not my best piece or the piece I am most proud of from this week, but it was the one I decided to share.



Each person got a poem critiqued by Renee on this final day. First, the "non-writer" would read the piece being critiqued. Then, the poet would read his/her piece. Cat and Renee had good points in that if the poem features anything awkward, the non-writer would be the one would stumble while reading. This is beneficial information to have, as it greatly helps guide the editing process.

Drafts and Critique

On day 2, I wrote a poem draft; I didn't share it until day four. My original draft featured the ending lines of "You do not love, admire, or caress./ You exist." I had trouble coming up with an ending and use these bullshit, cliched lines to end the poem----even though I knew they were bullshit, cliched lines. I always struggle with endings in my poetry. In the final draft, you can see that the group's critique helped me end the poem--I just got rid of those last two lines. No need to replace them; without them, the poem ends on a stronger note.

I also struggle with titles. Years ago, I thought that titles did not really matter. Your poem was what really mattered. I would create lame one word titles like "Storm" or "Broken." Through my workshop time at aTi, I have realized that a title can immediately engage your reader. Some poets even use their titles as gateways for the poem's opening lines. The group had asked me what I wanted to title the poem. I had no clue. Someone asked me. "Well, who is it about?" I replied, "Someone I Know." Bam! There was a title.

In retrospect, I do think that Cat's giant list of first lines also sparked my interest in writing this particular poem. I decided to use Ellen Dore Watson's "I want things whole, but I love things broken" as an epigraph for my piece.

Shown below are drafts 1, 2, and 3.

       

Day 4, 7/16/15

Our day four morning started off with lots of productivity since we critiqued four writers' works: Svea, Mary, John, and Carolyn. Once again, one of the wonderful parts of aTi is that you can see the diversity in writers' works. Svea's poem was titled "Texts From My Sons" and featured small snippets that almost any parent could recognize or relate to, with stanzas having the starting line of "Something happened." John's pieces, on the other hand, seem to resemble stream of consciousness works, but many of them had the reoccurring character of Howard. Carolyn's pieces often have elements of dark humor in them (hearing them read in her voice is incredibly enjoyable). Mary's pieces are mysterious---this is totally too simplistic of a word to describe them, but it is the word that currently comes to mind.

We also spent the morning sharing several resources, some academic and some just for fun. Case in point: The Rat's Ass Review, an online publication in which Svea had her work. By the way, my current goal is to be published in The Rat's Ass Review. How phenomenal would that be?

During the afternoon, we worked on a writing prompt featuring poetic forms such as villanelles and sonnets. Even though poets have used forms such as these for centuries, I detest them. I detest these forms because they tend to pose a challenge for me. Yes, I guess I am just lazy.

I decided to go to one of my favorite writing spots on campus (a concrete bench in the middle of a grass field in front of a mansion...yes...that's a lot of prepositions) and try writing a villanelle.

  Writing the villanelle was frustrating. There are two ending lines in villanelles that repeat several times. Since these lines repeat several times, it is imperative that they are meaningful. Now, I NEVER write nature poems. I live in northern NJ; the nature we appreciate is concrete and girders at malls. Being outside on "my bench" helped inspire me to write about nature. It all started with a bee circling me. I ended up writing a villanelle about an insect circling me. I changed the type of insect to "wasp," just because, to me, it has a more interesting sound than "bee."

Below is draft #1 in which the repeated lines "A wasp circles me" and "But I still feel free" can be seen. I struggled with whether I wanted to write "A wasp circles around me" or "A wasp circles me." The group helped me decide on the latter. "Circles around me" would be redundant. I also have posted draft #2, although honestly, there are not too many changes. I like posting written drafts because it gives people an idea of the struggle of writing. Words do not perfectly align on the page. There's indecision.

Overall, writing the villanelle was frustrating, but it was also very worthwhile. I would try writing one again another time, although I definitely would like to read several more of them to help me better grasp (memorize) the form.